The program will screen as a series twice during the festival -- on Saturday, June 3 and Sunday, June 4. It is sponsored by the Connecticut Office of Film, Television, and Digital Media. Go
HERE
for details.

According to Ginger Stickel, GIFF executive director, the new program was added "to celebrate the beautiful state of Connecticut and its many gifted filmmakers."

"The caliber of film entries we received was a testament to the skilled filmmakers from this area," she said.

The full GIFF schedule is online with tickets for sale. The festival kicks off on Friday, June 2 with the "Bending the Arc," a documentary about a team of doctors and activists whose work 30 years ago to save lives in a rural Haitian village grew into a global battle for the right to healthcare for all.

It will be followed by a special Town Hall Panel Q&A moderated by Barbara Pierce Bush with Ophelia Dahl (Partners in Health), Writer/Producer Cori Stern, Joia Mukherjee (Partners in Health), and Rifat Latifi M.D. from Westchester Medical Center.

Other GIFF highlights include:

The Changemaker Awards honoring Christy Turlington Burns for her work with Every Mother Counts and Renee Zellweger for her leadership and support in the search for a cure for ALS.

A performance by Flo Rida at the opening night party on Friday, June 2

The Social Impact Awards with a jury chaired by Actress, Activist and Humanitarian Sophia Bush.

"Live from Connecticut:" A discussion with Saturday Night Live Writers to be moderated by Lorne Manley of The New York Times.